A second Six Nations tournament could be played in 2020, as the sport’s governing bodies look to recoup their lost earnings.
It's reported that a proposal is on the table to complete the remaining fixtures of the current campaign, before restarting the competition again in the Autumn.
The emergency tournament is being planned as a contingency, if southern hemisphere sides are unable to travel for their proposed test matches in November.
The reported championship would see the same fixtures and venues, which would see Ireland travelling to France and England, giving them three home games. All fixtures would be completed across an 8-week schedule.
Ireland are due to travel to Australia for a two-test series in the summer, before another test against the Aussies in November in Dublin, as well as games against South Africa and Japan, but would take a severe financial hit if they were unable to host games.
Meanwhile, Australia’s Super Rugby and Sevens players have taken a 60 percent pay cut, to help their union deal with the financial crisis.
Among those players, Michael Hooper, Kurtley Beale, Matt Toomua and Dane Haylett-Petty – will take a collective pay cut of around €600,000 over the next six months.
